2009 Heaven and Hell Ride

aka,

There's a Story Behind That...


Apparently, the weatherman didn't get the memo explaining that the 2009 edition of the infamous Heaven and Hell Ride was scheduled for the second weekend of May this year.  The weather forecast, at least for the first three days of the ride, held the promise of a lot of rain.  In the true spirit of the H&H, however, it didn't make any difference to the intrepid group who assembled in Dale on Thursday morning.  The group initially consisted of trip leader Vladimir Roznos and his wife Bonnie, Chris and Diane Hancock, and Joe Bark, who had ridden over from Lexington the night before so that he could participate in the trip from its commencement.  Chris, Steve, and Cindy Shoemaker would ride over later in the day to meet up with us for the first night in Prestonsburg, KY.

After a spirited (and dry) ride to Leavenworth on IN 62, we hit the slab to manuever our way through Louisville and we stayed on it until we reached Frankfort.  Joe Bark used his local knowledge to lead us through some scenic horse country from there to Lexington.  And to enrichen the experience, he provided color commentary along the way for those of us equipped with AutoCom units.  Who knew there was so much significance to whether a horse farm fence has three rails or four?  The morning ride culminated with an excellent stop for lunch at an Irish pub in Lexington.

With bellies full, we hit some entertaining roads as we headed into eastern Kentucky and made our way through Irvine and Beattyville.  We eventually encountered the inevitable rain showers and had to take it easy along some excellent roads the rest of the way into Prestonsburg where we met up with the Shoemaker crew and had a memorable dinner at Reno's Roadhouse.

Friday morning started out with rain.  But after an hour and a half or so it started clearing, and amazingly we saw no more rain the rest of the trip!  We took the time to ride the scenic old road that winds its way down into the New River Gorge and crosses the river underneath the famous New River Gorge Bridge.




After lunch in Rainelle, WV, the day reached its pinnacle with an excellent ride along US 60 and WV 20.  It was along that stretch that Chris Shoemaker demonstrated that in spite of his relative youth (or maybe because of it), he is an excellent rider who embodies the ideals of "The Pace."  In fact, I will go so far as to say his skills and riding judgement are second to none as far as the Bavorak group is concerned.

The day ended with a surprisingly superb dinner featuring homemade bread and pasta at the hotel restaurant in Clarksburg, WV.  It was one of those experiences that lends credibility to the old cliche, "Don't judge a book by its cover."
The plan for Saturday called for a loop through northern West Virginia, through a corner of Maryland to Virginia, and back to the hotel in Clarksburg.  However, as the best of plans are want to do, it began to fall apart when the "Check Engine" light on Vladdy's Moto Guzzi began to glow.  Despite his best roadside efforts, a solution was not in the cards.  A call to his dealer revealed that there was a Guzzi dealer in Winchester, VA, so off we went.
After leaving the Guzzi at the dealer, we lingered over lunch at a brew pub that we found near downtown Winchester.  The food wasn't bad, but with 150 miles ahead of us, we were regretably unable to sample their malted selections.

Back at the dealer, we learned our efforts had been stymied, as the techs were unable to connect to the bike to read the fault code with their diagnostic computer.  However, their lack of assistance didn't stop them from trying to charge Vladimir for the "service."  And I thought only BMW dealers could be so arrogant!
On Sunday, after a Mother's Day breakfast at the Clarksburg FOP lodge (great pancakes!), the elder Shoemakers and the Roznoses hit the slab for a high speed run westward.  Steve and Cindy because a group of kindergartners were waiting to go to the zoo Monday, and Bonnie and Vladimir in search of a more cooperative Guzzi dealer (and there's a story behind that!).

The rest of us carried on with the trip as planned, including a lunch stop at a Biscuit World restaurant thanks to the rave reviews from Dave Godeke who had been in the area last fall.
After a second night in Prestonsburg, Joe and Chris departed for Lexington, while Diane and Chris took a more scenic westward route through Kentucky.

Starting out on the same roads we had ridden on Thursday, we learned that the rain we had mostly dodged had resulted in incredibly severe flash-flooding since we were there four days prior.  This picture shows that the water rose high enough to cover a street sign! And the truly amazing part is that the normal water level was probably 10-15 feet below the level of the asphalt!
Despite the slimy roads, we all made it home safely.  Another exciting and unpredictable Heaven and Hell ride in the book.

More memories from Heaven and Hell 2009...
Bonnie and Vladimir on the Goose.

<== When did you last see one of these?

An old store near the Maryland / West Virgina state line. ==>

<== Cindy identifies the problem with Vlad's Guzzi.

The group decides its a lost cause. ==>

<== Steve and Chris deal with the issue in their own way.

The Winchester dealership. ==>

Boredom sets in while waiting for the dealer to do their thing.

<== Taking a short break on Sunday.

Someone else having problems? ==>
Looks like a job for Dan Dunlap.
Thanks to Joe Bark for contributing photographs for this trip report.
 Chris Hancock
May 2009